Say It Ain't So Already

Obama Says Yes to GMO Food

March 31, 2010 at 9:08 PM Leave a comment

While I was working toward closing down tonight I thought I’d drift over to some food sites to see what’s going on in that neck of the woods.  I was hoping to stumble upon a great recipe or a delicious-looking picture of a dish I’d never allow myself to eat but that I could pretend I did eat just by looking at it.

Didn’t happen.  I came across something that made my eyes bugout.  I thought I might hold it until tomorrow but what with today’s offshore oil drilling news I figured I’d just as soon get all the bad news out of the way tonight and hope for a better tomorrow:  Using Recess Appointment, Obama Sneaks Pro-GMO, Pro-Pesticide Lobbyist into Key Agricultural Post:

The Obama administration’s schizophrenic approach to agriculture policy —making PR gestures toward local, organic, and sustainable farming with one hand, while nudging ahead the agendas of agribusiness giants like Monsanto and Dow Chemical with the other—was on full display this weekend when the president used a recess appointment to install Islam Siddiqui as the chief agricultural negotiator in the Office of the United States Trade Representative.

“He was a singularly poor choice,” said Dr. Marcia Ishii-Eiteman, senior scientist with the Pesticide Action Network North America. “He is the wrong person with the wrong background. We are surprised and very disappointed that President Obama recess-appointed him. There should have been a full senate vote.

It’s telling that Obama stooped to using same cynical, behind-the-scenes tactic to secure the Siddiqui appointment that his predecessor used to place judges like Charles Pickering (blocked because of past decisions that some considered racist) on the federal bench.

Prior to his appointment, Siddiqui was a vice president and lobbyist for Croplife America, a trade organization representing major corporate players in the agricultural chemical industry. Croplife became known to the public when it berated Michelle Obama for putting in a (horrors!) organic kitchen garden at the Whitehouse.

In November of last year I posted about Obama nominating Siddiqui but I didn’t follow-up (learned a lesson).

It’s telling that Obama was/is so committed to Siddiqui he included him in the recess appointments.

Wonder what Michelle thinks.

Another bow to the right?

Lotta bows going on around here.

OK, so, on to tomorrow.

Entry filed under: Food, President Barack H. Obama and Co.. Tags: .